Alibaba bought 36% stake in Sun Art from Auchan for US$ 3.6 billion
- 11 November 2020
- 576
Auchan leaves China after selling its Chinese subsidiary Sun Art
After 20 years of presence in China, Auchan exits the market by selling its stake in Sun Art hypermarket chain to retail giant Alibaba for US$ 3.6 billion.
As a result of the deal, Alibaba Group now holds controlling stake (72%) in China’s largest retail chain Sun Art, thereby, strengthening its position in the e-commerce market in China.
Alibaba Group acquired 70.9% of equity interest in A-RT Retail Holdings, which owns 51% of Sun Art, allowing Alibaba Group to double its effective stake in Sun Art that has a total of 484 retail outlets across China. Upon completion of the purchase, Alibaba expressed interest in acquiring the remaining Sun Art shares for HK$ 17 billion (US$ 2 billion).
Following the strategic alliance with Alibaba in 2017, in which the tech giant invested HK$ 22.5 billion for a 36% stake in the company, Sun Art outlets have since been set to integrate into Alibaba e-commerce platform. Since the recent deal, all of Sun Art stores have been integrated into Alibaba online platform, where the goods are now also available through other Alibaba subsidiaries, including Ele.me food delivery platform and Cainiao logistics company.
